Waypoints: Playing Chicago Hardball

In early February, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley complained that the CEOs of United Airlines and American Airlines were brushing him off. A dispute between the carriers and the city over O’Hare International’s costly expansion had just come to a head with AA and UA jointly filing a lawsuit against the city to block $3.4 billion in modernization work from going forward. “We had a meeting scheduled” to discuss the suit and “the airlines canceled it,” the annoyed mayor told reporters, adding that he tried to reschedule but was being ignored.

In early February, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley complained that the CEOs of United Airlines and American Airlines were brushing him off. A dispute between the carriers and the city over O’Hare International’s costly expansion had just come to a head with AA and UA jointly filing a lawsuit against the city to block $3.4 billion in modernization work from going forward. “We had a meeting scheduled” to discuss the suit and “the airlines canceled it,” the ...

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